One goal for this blog is to share growing older with grace and joy. Sometimes that's harder than others. It means accepting the wonders of life at the same time as realizing that my time on earth has a finite limit. The presence of good friends makes it easier to live in grace and feel the joy … [Read more...]
Daylilies – Peach, Golden Yellow, Dark Red Vibrant in My Sunny Garden
The garden in our old house was half shady and some of my daylilies did not do well. They survived and bloomed but never seemed to thrive. We moved here two years ago. Our back yard is almost all sun all the time. We moved some of our plants with us, including daylilies, even the ones that I was … [Read more...]
Visiting Escanaba, Michigan. Upper Peninsula Memories
My parents are from Escanaba. Mom was born in Chassel, a tiny town near Houghton, and her family moved to Wells which is just outside of Escanaba when she was about 7. This was the Depression and her dad found work as a sawyer in one of the local sawmills. Dad's family had a home in Escanaba … [Read more...]
Naming George. Adopting a Cat into Our Family
Dave and I love cats and we have several. While he was out helping his brother I heard a cat crying under the pool. Sure enough, out came a little, mostly grown charcoal and white cat. My friend Loren who was over said I'd better not adopt him or I'd be in trouble. I know Dave though. I … [Read more...]
Fixing Up the Swimming Pool – It’s Hot Outside!
When we moved here 20 months ago it was October and way too cold to go swimming. The previous owners had thoughtfully winterized the pool for us and we were excited to use it last summer. We never had a pool before aside from the little wading pools for the kids - which we used ourselves in really … [Read more...]
My To-Do List: Weed, Prune, Clean Up The Garden
What does your To-Do List look like? Do you have to weed? Thin those exuberant seedlings? Cut back overachieving ground cover? Remove volunteer saplings? Here is my To-Do List: 1. Weed. Get Rid of the Wild Morning Glories! These are horrible weeds that wind themselves around my … [Read more...]
Good Posture: Doing Pilates One Teaser at a Time
I hate gym. But I'm out of shape, have bad posture and weigh too much with all the extra in my tummy, rear and thighs. So... after Christmas Dave and I agreed to take a Pilates class together at the Borgess Health Center here in Kalamazoo. Our classes ran for 6 weeks. Dave bought me a Pilates … [Read more...]
Monica and Cats Who Eat House Plants – Azaleas and Shamrocks
Monica is a small calico with a big personality. She's Dave's cat, although as he says, she isn't going to take a chance and I make a perfectly good back up. Right now Dave is out of town helping his brother recover from a broken hip and Monica is acting up. Yesterday she kept eating the … [Read more...]
Mulch in the Flower Beds? What Type to Use?
I've read that mulch is a gardener's best friend. Mulch cuts down on weeds, holds moisture, gives you a non-muddy surface to walk. I've tried several different mulches and so far none of them is the panacea we hope. Bark mulch is traditional, what you see around shrubs in many yards and public … [Read more...]
Water Jugs for Just In Case – Country Living and Planning Ahead
We live in the country. Oh, not a wild, remote, thickly forested wilderness, more a rural road with a few houses on it, one farmer, a golf course and some woods. We do have a well for water and a septic tank. The one problem with wells is that pumps do not run without electricity. A power outage … [Read more...]